


Draughts

by Guenevere



Category: Naruto
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Kazekage Gaara (Naruto), Light Angst, Romantic Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-07
Updated: 2020-11-07
Packaged: 2021-03-09 01:20:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,497
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27436483
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Guenevere/pseuds/Guenevere
Summary: Set between the Kage Summit and the beginning of the Fourth Shinobi War.In the middle of a cold night, Fujimi receives an unexpected wakeup call by someone who’s looking for a little comfort before he has to leave again.
Relationships: Gaara (Naruto)/Original Character(s), Gaara (Naruto)/Original Female Character(s), Gaara (Naruto)/Reader
Comments: 4
Kudos: 32





	Draughts

**Author's Note:**

> For those who read “Plum” and were waiting for a sequel (if there are any), I’m sorry and I promise that I’m working on it. It’s just that I had a bit of a writer block and what I was writing didn’t really convince me. I had this piece on my mind for the longest time and I figured that writing something that I felt more comfortable with would help. It did, by the way.
> 
> This is set when Gaara goes back to the village after the Kage Summit and just before he has to leave for the war.

Nights in Suna could be very cold, especially after windy days. That day the wind had blown strongly and the night air was particularly cold.

Fujimi had just woken up because of a draught blowing on her face and she instinctively curled up under the covers, trying to go back to sleep.

But there was something that kept scratching her cheek, preventing her to fall asleep, and she drowsily attempted to wave it off with her hand. When her fingers perceived what it really was, Fujimi sat up abruptly, completely awake.

It hadn’t been a draught to wake her, as she had initially believed.

It had been a little swirl of reddish sand.

And even though she literally lived in a desert, with sand everywhere, Fujimi knew that no natural phenomenon could have made the small vortex of orange grains whirl with such precision. And right in front of her violet, wide with surprise eyes, nonetheless.

As if it had felt that the girl had woken up, the sand whirlwind twirled once around her head and then squeezed in a crack in the window, from which it had probably entered, darting out in the dark night.

Fujimi got up and left her bedroom, rushing down the stairs barefooted and crossing her small shop to run to the door. It didn’t even come to her to check who could have woken her in such a peculiar way, she perfectly knew who she would have found outside.

She unbolted the door lock and ran out, immediately spotting her nightly guest and addressing him with a happy smile.

“Gaara!”

The young Kazekage was waiting for her just outside the threshold of the shop and he greeted her with a nod.

“Fujimi.”

He took in her appearance, her knee-length, cream-coloured nightdress, her bare feet, and her long, mousy hair tied in a messy braid. Gaara felt a little guilty.

“I’m sorry to wake you up.”

Fujimi shook her head.

“It doesn’t matter. Would you like to come in?”

“No, I don’t have much time. After I came back from the Kage Summit I couldn’t take a minute off. This was the only time in which I managed to come to you. I really wished to see you.”

Despite the chilly night air, Fujimi felt as if she was burning up.

“I’m glad that you came. I… I also hoped that I could see you after your return, but I figured that you might have been busy and I didn’t want to bother you. How was the summit? Did you come to an agreement?”

Gaara looked away, as if he was uncomfortable.

“Kind of. Even though during the meeting there were some… issues.”

She stared anxiously at him.

“Issues? But you are all right, aren’t you?”

He smiled, appreciating her concern.

“Yes, I’m all right. But I have to leave again at dawn. That is why I had to come to see you now.”

Hearing of his imminent departure only served to increase Fujimi’s apprehension.

“You are leaving again? Something _did_ happen, then!”

Again, Gaara looked away and Fujimi understood that whatever the trouble was, it was something serious enough that he couldn’t talk about it. She smiled awkwardly at him.

“I’m sorry. Even though you usually confide in me, I know that there are some things that you can’t tell me. I’m just a civilian, after all. I didn’t mean to pry, it’s just… you are my friend and I can’t help but worry about you.”

He was her friend. Reminding him of that fact never failed to make Gaara feel a foreign feeling down in his guts. On one hand he knew he was happy that they were friends, but somehow he also knew that he wasn’t friends with her the same way he was with Naruto. It was a confusing feeling and he didn’t know what to do of it. Maybe, when he came back, he could ask her about it. In the past couple years she had always given him good advice and helped him sort his feelings. And, speaking about his return, while he was pondering on this, Fujimi was asking:

“Can you tell me how long you will stay away, at least?”

“I don’t know. Not for long, I hope.”

She smiled. It wasn’t one of her usual smiles. It looked a little strained.

“I hope so, too.”

Fujimi hugged herself and started rubbing her arms. Again, Gaara felt a little guilty for suddenly calling her out when the night air was so frigid.

“You are cold. You should go back inside. I have to leave soon, anyway.”

He was already turning away when Fujimi stopped him.

“Wait! I want to give you something!”

She ran inside and rushed up the stairs and into her bedroom, going to her chest of drawers and rummaging in one of the drawers until she found what she was looking for. She glanced at the little object in her hand and hesitated for a second, unsure if she should really give it to him. But in the end she decided that, since she already had Gaara waiting, it would be worse to go back empty handed than risk whatever his opinion of her gift would be.

She returned to him and, with her heart beating so fast in her chest that she was sure that he could hear it too, extended her hand towards him.

“Here, I made this for you.”

Gaara glanced curiously at her and took what she was offering him.

It looked like a flat satchel made of a thick, emerald green cloth and small enough to rest comfortably on his palm. It had a slightly irregular pentagonal shape and it was closed at its top by a bright red lanyard tied in a fancy knot. On the green fabric, Fujimi had embroidered abstract motifs with multicoloured threads and, right in the centre, with a beautiful scarlet thread, the character for “love” that she was so accustomed to see on Gaara’s forehead.

Overall it looked a little clumsily made, as if, despite Fujimi’s skill in sewing and embroidery, it was her first attempt at making something like that. Maybe it really was.

“What is it?”

She lowered her eyes, visibly embarrassed.

“I think it is called an _omamori_. I heard that people put something like prayers or small objects inside them and then carry them around for protection. I thought I could try to make you one. It came out a little lopsided, since I never made one before, but… well, I did my best.”

Gaara was speechless.

It was true that in the last years he had gotten somewhat accustomed to her gentleness, but, when he was the subject of her acts of kindness, he still felt bewildered as if she had slapped him instead of showing him affection.

Guess years of mistreatments were hard to forget.

“What did you put in it?”

Maybe he should have started by thanking her. She had made him a gift, after all. Oh well, it was too late to take it back, anyway.

Fujimi, for her part, didn’t even think about the fact that he hadn’t thanked her, too busy elaborating his question and reflecting on how to answer.

“Oh. Well… actually I finished it just before I went to bed and I… I really didn’t think that you’d show up in the middle of the night, so I… I still haven’t put anything in it…”

To say that she felt mortified was the understatement of the century. He had to leave for some clearly important mission, it was obvious that he was in a hurry and that he had no time to lose. And still she had made him wait for her to fetch her stupid gift and hadn’t even considered that it wasn’t finished.

Way to go, Fujimi. He was surely impressed and for all the wrong reasons.

The only thing left to do now was try to fix it.

“Let… let me think of something real quick! I promise it won’t take long!”

Now what to use as a good-luck charm small enough to fit in that tiny, tiny satchel? And obtainable in a very short time? And fit for no less but the Kazekage? The Kazekage who was departing for an important mission?

“A coin? A dried flower? But it should be a flower with a particular meaning. A prayer? But it would take too long to write…”

While Fujimi freaked out trying to think of something to put in his _omamori_ , Gaara kept glancing between her and said green satchel, at its lopsided but well sewed sides and its colourful embroideries.

It surely had taken many days to make it, time that Fujimi could have spent doing anything else and instead had used to make him a gift, something that would allegedly protect him. True or not, she had done so with his wellbeing in mind. And not because she expected him to repay her in some way, but just because she had wanted to, as she had often told him when asked why she had done something for him.

Gaara had long since understood that his friend’s affection was genuine and that she deeply cared about him. He had seen it on many occasions and he could see it now, while she frantically thought on how to complete her gift for him.

Watching her, Gaara thought that she was pretty with her slim figure, her flushed cheeks, her violet eyes and her slightly dishevelled hair. And it was on her hair that his gaze lingered longer, particularly on the short strands that had fallen off the messy braid and were now framing her face.

He reached out and delicately grasped one of those strands with two fingers, effectively silencing Fujimi and prompting a puzzled look from her.

“This would be good.”

She was speechless for a moment, not really understanding what he meant before uttering:

“What? My hair?”

He nodded.

“You want me to put a… a strand of my hair in your amulet? Are you sure?”

Again, he nodded. All of a sudden, Fujimi’s legs felt a little wobbly.

“Well… okay, then.”

Fujimi entered the shop and went behind the counter, Gaara following behind her and watching her every move. She untied the lavender ribbon that kept her messy hairdo together and unravelled the braid. When down, her straight hair reached down to her waist in a silky, hazel coloured waterfall. Gaara, who was used to see her hair tied in a low ponytail all the time, looked with interest at those mousy waves while Fujimi parted her hair, bringing some over her right shoulder. Then she took a pair of scissors from a drawer and severed a short strand, tying it together with the lavender ribbon and securing it with a tight knot.

She motioned to Gaara to hand her the _omamori_ and then loosened the fancy knot that served as the closing of the satchel just enough to make the small strand of hair slip inside. She then closed the _omamori_ by tightening the red knot and straightened it to make it perfectly flat again.

Fujimi walked out from behind the counter to get in front of Gaara and reached out to give him the _omamori_.

“There, all done.”

“Thank you.”

They didn’t know who started it but, when Gaara went to take the little satchel, he instead found his hand grasping Fujimi’s fingers. Fujimi, on her part, when she felt his touch on her palm, reflexively held his hand to keep him there.

It lasted just a few seconds but they both glanced alternatively at each other’s faces and at their fastened hands and they couldn’t help but smile a little embarrassedly.

In the end, they regretfully let go because they both knew that Gaara had stayed significantly past what he had initially planned.

He would have wanted to say something before leaving but he really didn’t know what she would have liked to hear, so he merely nodded at her in farewell before turning around to leave. He was already out in the dark, deserted street when Fujimi ran out calling for him.

“Wait!”

He stopped and turned to look at her. Her long, dishevelled hair cascaded down her back and shoulders and her violet eyes were gazing apprehensively at him. She hesitated, as if she wasn’t sure what to say. Then she uttered:

“Whatever you have to do… I know that you are the Kazekage and all, so I shouldn’t worry this much, but… please, just be careful.”

Gaara felt a foreign feeling in his chest. He didn’t know what it was but he felt oddly warm. And content.

“I will.”

“I mean…”

Fujimi’s voice broke and she took a few seconds to regain control. No matter what, she wouldn’t cry in front of him.

“You… you already died once… so… I worry, okay?”

Gaara knew that his death had really affected her. He still remembered vividly how she was when he woke up after being brought back to life, her face streaked with tears and her eyes swollen for crying for so long. She had hugged him, holding him tightly and murmuring endlessly how scared she had been. He knew that he didn’t want to see her like that ever again.

“I know. But there is no need to worry. I’ll be back soon.”

She smiled despite her concern. She wanted to send him off as best as she could.

“I’ll be waiting.”

He nodded. Hearing her say that she would be waiting for his return made him feel happy. He liked how she made him feel loved and he promised to himself that he would tell her so as soon as he came back.

Gaara walked away, clutching the _omamori_ in his hand. He was glad that he came to see her.

Fujimi watched him walk away, her anxiety increasing progressively while his silhouette became smaller.

He had always confided her everything even if it was work related, so that she could advise him as best as she could. The fact that he couldn’t tell her neither what was decided at the Kage Summit nor the reason why he had to leave again in such a hurry hinted that it was something more concerning than usual. Something dangerous.

She knew that he wasn’t necessarily reckless but she also knew that he would do whatever it took to ensure that his village would be safe. That was why he had died not so long ago. It made her proud of him because it showed how much he had improved, but at the same time it worried her.

Knowing that she couldn’t do much to support him didn’t help.

Fujimi raised her eyes towards the night sky that was beginning to pale with the first light of the incoming dawn, hugging herself and rubbing her arms through the thin fabric of her nightgown.

She felt really cold.

**Author's Note:**

> Omamori are Japanese amulets, usually sold at Shinto shrines or Buddhist temples, that are believed to provide various forms of fortune or protection. I bent the concept just a little because I liked the idea of Fujimi trying to protect Gaara in her own way since, as a civilian, she can’t help him much practically. By the way, Fujimi's name (藤美) is written with the Japanese characters fuji (藤 “wisteria”) and mi (美 “beauty, beautiful”). I chose to name my character after wisteria because it’s a flower with many positive meanings (longevity, beginning of a new life, vitality, good luck, affection and devotion).  
> I gave a few hints on Fujimi (like the fact that she runs a small shop) that should indicate that she is theoretically part of a bigger story. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to write it completely, but I’m trying to sketch and toss out the most significant pieces of it, hoping that they sound interesting even without all the context.  
> I promise that I’ll do my best with the sequel for “Plum”. I can begin telling you that it will involve embroidery somewhere ;)  
> Thank you for reading my story, I would be glad to know what you think of it if you would like to spend a minute to write a couple words to me.


End file.
